Couple won battle to give son controversial name after registrar tried to stop them
A couple won a battle to give their baby a controversial name after the bold choice was initially rejected.
Find out why it proved so contentious below:
One of the biggest responsibilities for new parents is picking the right name for the baby - especially as people sometimes don’t agree on the final choice.
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If you go for something classic, others might think it's dated, while if you dare go for a more modern approach, they often find it a bit too out-there.
But what if the name you go for is ‘banned’, and the person who disapproves of the name picked for the baby is the registrar?
This is what happened to parents Dan and Mandy Sheldon, from Derbyshire, who were allegedly told their son would not succeed in life if he was given the controversial name.
And the moniker in question? Lucifer.
In Christianity, Lucifer is one of the names given to the Devil and therefore has unfavourable and hellish connotations.
Dan and Mandy, who are not religious, decided to call their son Lucifer because they wanted a ‘nice, strong’ name after ‘struggling’ to come up with one.
Speaking to Rochelle Humes and Ore Oduba on This Morning back in July 2020, Dan appeared on the show with four-month-old Lucifer and explained that the registrar warned the child would ‘never succeed in life, no teacher would want to teach him and no employer would want to hire him’.
The dad also said critics have suggested the name Lucifer is in line with trying to name a baby Hitler.
“It should have been a joyous day and it was very hurtful,” he told the two hosts. “We didn’t know what to say, we didn’t know what response to give to her.”
However, the couple managed to name their son Lucifer despite opposition from a registrar after launching an official complaint to the local council when the registrar declined.
Although the UK does not have laws banning specific names, those with obscenities or numerals can be rejected by the registrar.
The name ‘Lucifer’ is banned in other countries like New Zealand, which added the name to its list of prohibited monikers in 2013 along with the name 'Christ' and royal-themed names like 'King', 'Prince' and 'Princess'.
The couple got their wish earlier this year, with little Lucifer getting the name his parents chose for him when the registrar discovered that it is not illegal to give the child that particular moniker.
Derbyshire County Council released a statement that said: "We apologize if they were offended but it is the job of our registrars to advise in these matters as sometimes people are not aware of certain meanings or associations around certain names."
Jess Hardiman